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Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) people in India face legal and social difficulties not experienced by non-LGBT persons. Sexual activity between people of the same gender is legal but same-sex couples legally cannot marry or obtain civil partnerships. On 6 September 2018, the Supreme Court of India decriminalised homosexuality by declaring Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code unconstitutional. The Court unanimously ruled that individual autonomy, intimacy, and identity are protected fundamental rights. Since 2014, transgender people in India have been allowed to change their gender without sex reassignment surgery, and have a constitutional right to register themselves under a third gender. Additionally, some states protect hijras, a traditional third gender population in South Asia, through housing programmes, welfare benefits, pension schemes, free surgeries in government hospitals and others programmes designed to assist them. There are approximately 4.8 million transgender people in India.Over the past decade, LGBT people have gained more and more tolerance in India, especially in big cities. Nonetheless, most LGBT people in India remain in the closet, fearing discrimination from their families, who may see homosexuality as shameful. Reports of honour killings, attacks, torture, and beatings of members of the LGBT community are not uncommon in India. Discrimination and ignorance are particularly present in rural areas, where LGBT people often face rejection from their families and forced opposite-sex marriages.